My Mayor is a Monster
"My Mayor is a Monster!" is the fifth episode of the first season of The Unexpected Podcast. It aired on March 2nd, 2018. It is the second original concept to be produced after "The Strange Music of Derrick Zugg", this time based upon a nostalgic fondness for the child-safe horror of Andrew Soucek and Erik Bergstrom's youth. This episode features the first cast member besides Soucek or Bergstrom to return to The Unexpected Podcast. Zach Marion, who played the teacher, Mr. Langenschmidt, in the previous episode, "Truth or Dare...or Death!", signed an industry-shaking contract after his performance won over critics and landed him numerous awards nominations. Marion was outright given the feature role of Mayor Elbert before the show even went into development. An associate of Soucek's, Charlie Eccles, also earned a role as the third friend, Eddie. Plot Original Description: Three kids are in for the SLIME of their lives after learning that none other than Mr. Nice Guy Mayor Elbert may, in fact, be a monster. On the last day of school, two long-time friends, Robbie and Jimmy, plan their summer vacation, beginning with a sleepover at Jimmy's house. Robbie is excited at first, until he hears that Jimmy also invited his new friend, Eddie, who Robbie has issues with. After a quick, friendly run-in with Mayor Elbert, who'd given an inspirational speech at the school assembly, Robbie decides to make the best of the slumber party and the two depart school. During the party, Robbie leaves Jimmy and Eddie alone in the room together. Eddie finally takes the chance to reveal a problem that's been on his mind, telling Jimmy that he's worried about the multiple schoolchildren that have gone missing. After some initial investigating, he reveals Mayor Elbert as a possible culprit. Robbie returns and, after giving Eddie some grief about it, is shocked when Eddie shows proof that Mayor Elbert might not only be a child abductor, but a real-life monster as well. Eddie then convinces both Jimmy and Robbie to accompany him to the Mayor's house to uncover more evidence. After waiting for Mayor Elbert to leave his house, the three boys enter and find questionable, though otherwise innocent, items. They're up in the mayor's bedroom when he returns, forcing them to hide in his closet. Mayor Elbert enters the room looking for his misplaced phone when he hears the three boys chattering in his closet. After he uncovers them, they confront him about his misdeeds, for which he has a number of clever excuses. It's only when he doesn't have an answer to how slime appeared on a missing classmate's lunchbox that Eddie is able to pull off the mayor's mask and reveal him to be an alien. The former Mayor Elbert confesses to infiltrating the town as an alien from the planet Zuggdar, but with wholesome intentions. The boys are convinced when he shows them a letter from their missing classmate, which proves the boy moved to another town. Alien Elbert offers to give the boys a ride home after first presenting them with a gift for their visit, leading them to his basement. It's here where the boys are confronted with his real persona, a demon who runs orgies and commits sadistic behavior on prisoners. In a twist, Robbie finds that his little brother Timmy has joined Demon Elbert in his evil practices. Commercial For the first time in The Unexpected Podcast's history, a commercial is run that doesn't include a business. Instead, a campaign ad for Tonya Timmers, running for Tony County School Board, is included, perhaps showing some political bias on the producers' behalf. Tonya claims she'll keep parents from worrying about their children while at school, ending the ad with a slightly despondent plea for votes. Production After the near-unanimous critical success of "Truth or Dare...or Death!", creators Andrew Soucek and Erik Bergstrom decided it was time for another attempt at all-original content, using a seed of an idea developed by Soucek for a familiar children's horror series to end in a completely R-rated scenario. Bergstrom took the idea and researched various children's horror series, as well as the surreal, uber-violent horror film "Baskin", to complete a script in just one day. Rumors have also circulated that the two drew some inspiration from a real-life mayor from their home state of Minnesota who led a mysterious second-life. Having enjoyed the efforts they received from other local voice talent for "Truth", Bergstrom wrote a third child's role with the implicit desire to cast another newcomer. Charlie Eccles had provided unused audio for "Truth" (his role was later cast to Travis Mattick due to technical issues with Eccles' recording), and so he was provided another opportunity with the role of Eddie. His baritone voice would later be criticized as "too old" for 7th-grader Eddie, though others have praised his performance as both "nuanced" and "not completely insulting". The role of Mayor Elbert was written from the start with returning vocal talent Zach Marion in mind, though he was originally contracted to provide only one voice, that of the elderly mayor. Soucek and Bergstrom had to concede additional benefits to Marion in order to receive two additional voices, that for Alien Elbert and Demon Elbert. Despite these setbacks, the show's creators had every intention of keeping Marion contracted for future episodes. Artwork for the show was once again completed by in-house visual artist Dustin Riccio. Soucek and Bergstrom were divided on how to approach the art; Soucek wanted something very specific to a well-known children's horror series, while Bergstrom wanted something more general to appeal to a wider audience. After presenting a few examples, Riccio's chilling portrayal of a child stalked by a man-beast, surrounded with a slime border, was enough to win Bergstrom over. For one episode only, the producers were credited with the names "Andrew Slime-cek and Scare-ik Bergstrom". In-Universe References Parts of the Unexpected Universe to return to the episode include the names "Tony" and "Tim", though in an understated way, during a campaign ad for Tonya Timmers, running for Tony County School Board. A character named "Tim" also appears in the story as Robbie's younger brother, a missing boy named "Timmy" who acts as the impetus for Robbie's investigation into the mayor. Dongarud Creek is once again referred to as a place where Little Timmy had seen strange creatures, establishing it as a recurring location for mysterious disturbances. For the third episode in a row, mustard is discovered as a prop in the suspect's living area. For the second episode in a row, a character uses the phrase, "Just to recap..." to remind everyone of how they got into a predicament. Going "bananas" is another line that's reused after being introduced in "Truth or Dare...or Death!" Another phrase, "If I'm being honest with myself...", reappears for the first time in this episode, after being introduced in "Field of Screams". Audio from that episode is also used when the three main characters are watching a horror film that appears to use the ending of a Grandma sewing her grandson into a jersey. A callback to "The Strange Music of Derrick Zugg" is made when the Mayor is initially revealed to be an alien from the planet "Zuggdar". Historically, the episode is known for featuring the first instance of the prop "huckleberry pie" while rummaging through the Mayor's refrigerator. Memorable Quotes "All right guys, enough hemming and hawing. You wanna play some video games or what?" - Jimmy "I...I may have proof that...well, that Mayor Elbert…is a monster!" - Eddie "What kind of proof? A jar of monster slime? Come on, give me a break. Mayor Elbert is the last person who could do this sort of thing. He mows elderly people’s lawns all summer. And he plays guitar every Thursday night for my grandma!" - Robbie "This right here, if you can recall, is Kyle Jocko’s lunchbox. I found it in the dumpster behind city hall next to a bunch of Mayor Elbert’s mail. The peanut butter sandwich is still inside, and...get this, guys...it’s still uneaten!" - Eddie "First night of summer vacation and here I am, chasing imaginary monsters." - Robbie "Hmm...now where is that phone of mine? It’s gotta be in here somewhere. Let’s see. Did I leave it under the bed? No…. no, not there. OH! Maybe in my sock drawer...no, not there either. I know...I bet I left it in my closet! Ha, I’m notorious for doing that. Well, better stop killing time, I’ll just walk right over and open the closet door..." - Mayor Elbert "Oh, I’ve got proof. I’ve got proof, all right! Remember this lunch box? I found it in the dumpster behind city hall, out with your other trash. It belonged to one of your victims...Kyle Jocko. Remember the name? Or did it get lost with the names of all the other kids you abducted and ate?" - Eddie "Fine! You got me. I’m really not a human. I’m an alien from the planet Zuggdar. I came here to analyze Earth, but in the end...well, if I’m being honest with myself...you humans truly impressed me with how you all worked together and achieved great things. Instead of going back to my home planet, I dressed myself up as a human and worked my way into the town government just so...well, just so I could be a part of it all." - Mayor Elbert "Guys, I think this is legit. I remember Kyle Jocko’s handwriting, and this is spot-on." - Robbie "We’re not f***ing monsters, you f***ing sh** d**k! We’re motherf***ing cosmic beings from other dimensions! Now step up on those stools and put your sh**ty little hands in those handcuffs. I still have that special something to show you!" - Mayor Elbert